Posted on 08/30/2008 6:26:11 PM PDT by autumnraine
NEW ORLEANS, Louisiana (CNN) -- New Orleans Mayor Ray Nagin ordered a mandatory evacuation of the city beginning 8 a.m. Sunday morning but urged residents to consider escaping "the mother of all storms" before then.
New Orleans residents leave Friday via Interstate 10 westbound ahead of Hurricane Gustav.
1 of 3 more photos » "You need to be scared," Nagin said. "You need to be concerned and you need to get your butts moving out of New Orleans right now. This is the storm of the century."
(Excerpt) Read more at cnn.com ...
who is TSA?
Many buses hired for evacuation did not arrive
http://www.nola.com/hurricane/index.ssf/2008/08/many_buses_hired_for_evacuatio.html
The state contracted for 700 buses, only 150 showed up. The state is backfilling with school buses.
Gustav is expected to be a cat 4 or 5 at its closest proximity to New Orleans - Katrina was a cat 3 when it arrived.
Rebuilding at or below sea level is folly - turn the French Quarter into a theme park and revert the rest to wetlands.
Transportation Security Agency - the folks who make sure that you don't try to get through the airport security checkpoint with more than 3 oz of contact lens solution.
I am stationed at the Navy Base in New Orleans, and I am afraid that the entire city is about to be destroyed by this storm.
My home in Marrero? I am not counting on ever seeing it again.
President Broussard just announced that he thinks the West Bank could see 6-8 feet water surges into the area.
If that happens, then it's bye bye to everything I have ever owned and worked for.
Thankfully, I am insured, but I still hate the thought of my home being turned into a wasteland.
My assumption would be that it's to find places that could take them.
Anyone who doesn’t get out this time has no (expletive) excuse. Still sorry to see more destruction, however, especially in what is one of my favorite cities from a cultural perspective (and yes, I have seen the WORST parts of the city, including Treme and the lower 9th, before Katrina).
Agreed. Let's be encouraged by the fact that people seem to have learned from the Katrina mess.
I was in New Orleans in April to help with rebuilding. It's still a mess down there three years later. The reality is that there was plenty of blame to go around. Nagin, Blanco, and yes some has to go to the President and FEMA. Lots of stuff was handled poorly. People made the wrong choices, the wrong assumptions.
What we should be doing now is watching and praying for those in the storms path, and then considering how we will respond to the aftermath.
Isn’t waiting until Sunday pushing it a bit?
The storm will be close enough to land by Mon morning that I would imagine travel would not likely be possible in many places.
They need to be heading out yesterday.
I think that that's what declaring a state of emergency can do and that's done by the governor.
This thing looks to be making landfall as a category 4. That's why.
So sorry to hear about that.
I don’t doubt that you are right, though.
For Katrina, they had intact levees and pumps. I understand that the repairs that would be needed to make the city safe again would take far too long and weren’t done anyway.
This time, they’re just sitting ducks.
Prayers for you and your family.
Amen. Thank you for not making this political. My prayers to all of our fellow Americans in the path of this hurricane.
P.S. Is it really the "storm of the century"? I think this is the problem, people are so used to the weather-media-hype that we tend to ignore it at times.
To some people it's all about team points.
Thankfully, I am insured, but I still hate the thought of my home being turned into a wasteland
Wow. So sorry that you're going thru this, and serving us on top of it. I am glad you're insured, and pray that you stay safe.
Thank you for your service.
Hey,Prole,,,
You hang in there,,,Prayers Up,,,
The mods already locked :
http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/news/2069843/posts
Food Fight I guess,,,
FWIW :
Statement as of 11:00 PM EDT on August 30, 2008
the eye of Gustav crossed western Cuba during the past several
hours and is now over the southeastern Gulf of Mexico. The
hurricane weakened during passage over land...with the eye becoming
cloud filled and the eyewall convection become less impressive in
both satellite and radar data. It is estimated that the initial
intensity has decreased to 120 kt. An Air Force Reserve hurricane
hunter aircraft will arrive in the storm about 06z to determine the
actual intensity.
The motion has been wobbling between 315 and 320 degrees at 13
kt...with 320/13 used in this package. There is no change in the
synoptic reasoning...with Gustav being steered northwestward by a
mid-level ridge over the southeastern United States...and then by
an amplifying mid-level ridge over the eastern United States. The
track guidance is tightly clustered through 72 hr...calling for
Gustav to track across the Gulf of Mexico and make landfall in
southeastern or south central Louisiana. The new forecast track
follows this scenario is lies just to the east of the previous
track. After landfall...the dynamical models disagree on how much
mid-level ridging will develop north and west of Gustav...with a
considerable spread in the guidance. The track forecast at that
time calls for a slow westward motion. It should be noted that the
12z UKMET forecasts Gustav to turn southwestward as it reaches the
Louisiana coast...which appears unlikely at this time.
The intensity forecast remains problematic. Analyses from CIMSS at
the University of Wisconsin suggest that the intensification
occurred despite about 20 kt of southerly vertical shear caused by
an upper-level trough over the Gulf of Mexico. The presence of
this shear is supported by radar data from the Key West WSR-88D...
which currently shows a weak southern eyewall and little
precipitation south of the eyewall. The SHIPS model suggests the
shear should diminish some during the next 18 hr...then increase
again as Gustav moves between the trough and an upper-level
anticyclone to the southeast. On the ocean side...Gustav is
forecast to pass over The Loop current during the next 24 hours...
then possibly pass over a couple of cold eddies north of 26n. All
guidance forecast re-intensification during the next 24 hr...so the
intensity forecast will call for a peak intensity of 135 kt in 24
hr...followed by slight weakening before landfall due to shear and
lower heat content...then faster weakening over land. Due to the
various factors...this is a low confidence intensity forecast.
Hurricane warnings will likely be required for portions for the
northern Gulf Coast on the next advisory.
Forecast positions and Max winds
initial 31/0300z 23.1n 83.8w 120 kt
12hr VT 31/1200z 24.6n 85.3w 130 kt
24hr VT 01/0000z 26.5n 87.4w 135 kt
36hr VT 01/1200z 28.3n 89.5w 130 kt
48hr VT 02/0000z 29.8n 91.2w 120 kt...inland
72hr VT 03/0000z 31.5n 93.0w 50 kt...inland
96hr VT 04/0000z 32.5n 94.5w 30 kt...inland
120hr VT 05/0000z 32.5n 96.0w 25 kt...inland
$$
forecaster Beven
~~~
Waaay too early to forecast the eye-strike now,,,
I think the track will shift back to the west a little,,,
TANKS a Bunch for Your Service,my FRiend...
He was cool!!
Probably depends on how much they stand to profit from FEMA. Hey, haven't we seen this movie?
Disclaimer: Opinions posted on Free Republic are those of the individual posters and do not necessarily represent the opinion of Free Republic or its management. All materials posted herein are protected by copyright law and the exemption for fair use of copyrighted works.